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Find out moreWe want to introduce to you some spine-chilling tales that inspire concern, fear, or terror... of course accompanied with a delicious feeling of excitement. Walk on the darker side of life, discover wicked characters, eerie locations, and plots that encourage goosebumps to skitter down your arms. If you feel the need to leave the light on, or find yourself a little jumpy after reading these books, just don’t blame us!
May 2018 Book of the Month Deliciously and thrillingly creepy, The Craftsman is an intensely gripping, superb read. Thirty years ago Larry Glassbrook confessed and was imprisoned for a series of child murders. Florence Lovelady was at the beginning of her career when she was involved in the case, now Larry is dead, however hauntingly similar events start to surface. The first chapter has huge impact, a mystifying and unexpected blast hit me full on, and then gently faded into the background. Set in two time frames, with thirty years between them, the story is brisk, and I loved the fact that you are expected to keep up. Sharon Bolton balances the knife edge between reality and extraordinary with a beautiful subtlety. This is just so, so readable, once in, I didn’t want to stop, and found myself reading into the small hours, be warned though, reading at night doubles the chill factor. As I raced through the final few chapters, I almost didn’t want the journey to end, yet the last few words sent the most delightful icy goosebumps snaking down my arms. I highly recommend stepping inside the pages, just give yourself up to the glory of the The Craftsman... this I have no doubt, will be one of my favourite reads of the year.
January 2018 Book of the Month A masterclass in suspense awaits the reader in this almost understated, yet powerfully intense and dark novel. A family needing a fresh start move into a house where an unsolved double murder occurred twelve years previously, their actions set in motion an alarming chain of events. The first chapter was sharply powerful, yet almost dispassionately described by an observer, allowing me to bear witness, to remain on the edge. The characters are fascinating, each nudging feelings and thoughts in different directions as the various points of view created small time warps, as deception altered the vivid picture in my mind. J. Robert Lennon sets small seemingly inconsequential moments spinning together to create a throbbing tension which breaks with dramatic energy. Broken River is an intelligent, entirely captivating read with a hint of the uncanny skating over the pages - highly recommended.
A simply sensational and thrilling debut! Met police detectives William Oliver Layton-Fawkes and Emily Baxter find themselves smack bang in the middle of the hunt for a serial killer. A hammer hard prologue slapped my awareness, and from that moment on, I didn't want to put this book down, even for a single second. Daniel Cole handles the case and the characters with aplomb, this feels different, fresh, exciting. In the midst of the mayhem, I found myself snorting with laughter, a moment later I wrinkled my face in horror and disbelief. An overflowing fistful of danger, gripping urgency, and the intricate twisting storyline certainly kept me on my toes. ‘Ragdoll’ is a humdinger of a tale that smashes into your senses, wreaks havoc in your mind, and leaves you wanting more. I really can’t wait to see what Daniel Cole comes up with next! Liz Robinson ~ There are a lot of serial killer novels out there, for which Hannibal Lecter must take much of the blame, but Daniel Cole's powerful debut deserves a (bloody) place in the sun or, at any rate, in the autopsy lab! A puppet-like body is discovered made up of the dismembered parts of six different victims, hence the 'ragdoll' appellation given to it by the media. Once disgraced Met cop William Fawkes is assigned the case together with his former partner Detective Emily Baxter and they appear powerless when the killer taunts them by announcing the names of his future victims. As Fawkes seeks a form of redemption with the support of his team, the pace of the story accelerates exponentially and will leave you breathless all the way to a most intense finale. Gory and ultra-realistic, dark, populated by flawed characters and just not the villain, this is a splendid addition to the genre and well worth the nail-biting detour if you have a strong constitution! Maxim Jakubowski Books in The Ragdoll Series: 1. Ragdoll 2. Hangman 3. End Game Serial Reader? Check out our 'Fall in Love With a Book Series' collection to find amazing book series to dive in to.
Set in three time scales this is truly terrific stuff, a lovely, chilling, Gothic tale. In 1635 the “Silent Companions” are purchased. In 1865 they, and a journal, are discovered in a locked room. Some years later a damaged mute woman is encouraged by her doctor while she resides in a lunatic asylum branded a murderer, to write her story. We get all of this in short, punchy chapters which build tension, a spooky atmosphere and fear. The lady of the manor in 1865 is a young, pregnant widow, Elsie, whose husband owned the house. He was preparing it for his new child to arrive when he mysteriously dies. It is her companion, her husband’s cousin Sarah, who finds the “Silent Companions”, strange wooden cut-out figures of a girl, a gypsy boy and an old woman. She is reading the journal of Anne from 1635 whose mute daughter, Hetta, resembles one of the wooden figures. Sarah believes Hetta’s spirit is within the strange piece of art just looking for someone to love her. Elsie believes otherwise. Another “Silent Companion” appears and “someone” stops Sarah reading the second volume of Anne’s journal. Why …. No more spoilers, just read this haunting, compulsive and genuinely spine chilling novel, full of the unexpected. ~ Sarah Broadhurst
November 2017 Book of the Month A chilling ghostly tale set in 1935 on Kangchenjunga in the Himalayas. Five men attempt to climb to the summit of the worlds third highest mountain, they take the same path as a failed climb in 1907 and soon find local superstitions and eerie sightings affect their thoughts and nerves. Michelle Paver embeds a sense of complete reality, Dr Stephen Pearce tells the story and it feels as though it could be a documented historic account. Yet as I read, small unnerving suggestions began to affect my reasoning. Thoughts and feelings, trapped and hemmed in by fear, transferred from the pages. Michelle Paver explains at the end of the book that in reality, the actual peak of the mountain remained untouched until 1980, so as not to upset ‘whatever’ lived up there. Was the altitude affecting the climb in the novel, or a more supernatural presence? ‘Thin Air’, set in a world unknown to most, is an unsettling, gripping, and oh so readable tale. ~ liz Robinson
A haunting, sinister tale, where tension coils, ready to bite, to sting and provoke thoughts. Ranald McGhie finds himself in an entirely unexpected position, having inherited Newton Hall, a family mansion he had no idea existed, however a torturous journey lies ahead. Michael J. Malone has created such a readable story, yet one that made me think, made me question my thought processes again and again. He plays with your mind, simply, clearly and so effectively. Newton Hall sits centre stage, and within the walls malevolence waits, ready to seize Ranald’s imagination, his judgment, his instinct. Loops of history swirl ever closer, entangling Ranald’s thoughts, creating a disturbance that reverberates through the pages. As icy goose bumps of awareness settled, as ‘House of Spines’ drew to a close, I found a delicious shiver of uncertainty once again trailing a path down my neck, ensuring a provocative ending to an eerie and stimulating read. ~ Liz Robinson
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | Oh my word, this book is devious, twisted, and an absolute knockout! The story, revolving around love, passion, suspicion, and deceit, kept me teetering on a razor sharp wire of uncertainty. Sarah Pinborough’s writing is sublime, it’s shrewd, artful, cunning, and as the story sucked me in, I felt the manipulation of the words warping and writhing as they entered my consciousness. I found myself sitting in stunned silence when I reached the very end, then wanted to jump and down and recommend ‘Behind Her Eyes’ to the world. Start reading just as soon as you can so you too, can experience the deep, dark, dangerous depths of this truly bone-chilling and wonderful novel. Make sure you enter with a clear mind, and try not to get too confident as the story will quite happily trip you up and stamp all over you. Sarah Pinborough, I salute you! ~ Liz Robinson The considerable buzz building around Pinborough's new novel (following the already mightily impressive The Death House and 13 Minutes) is led not only from her respective publishers' camp but also, more importantly, from advance readers, and is fully deserved. This could well become a massive commercial success along the lines of Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train and it held me in thrall from beginning to end. The tale of a dark, puzzling and twisted affair that goes horribly wrong for, seemingly, all parties, it's unpredictable, tricky, immediate, gut-gripping and difficult to summarise without giving out any of the shattering spoilers and seduces like no other, with viewpoints changing in front of your eyes as you turn the page, putting all you've read before into question in a most clever way, sowing constant seeds of doubt the moment you begin to identify with one of the characters and sympathise with them. Imaginatively wicked, ingenious, and 'that' ending will leave you open-mouthed. ~ Maxim Jakubowski
Longlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize 2017. A thoroughly perturbing, provocative, yet riveting read. Single parent Ruth wakes one morning to find her two children missing, almost immediately she is surrounding by judgement and condemnation. The first few pages set you in a time, a situation that allows understanding to settle, before you are thrust into 1965 and Ruth’s life just before her children disappear. Emma Flint allows us to see beyond the obvious, gradually peeling away layer after layer, slowly encouraging truth to creep out from where it is hidden. I wanted to throw preconception out of the window, to stamp and howl at assumptions, and yet questions hovered at the back of my mind. ‘Little Deaths’ isn't an easy comfortable read, it jolts and jars at your senses as it takes hold and doesn't let go. Poignant and immensely sad, this well written novel is a truly captivating read. ~ Liz Robinson
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | July 2017 Book of the Month. A humdinger of a serial killer thriller in sheer overdrive, The Fourth Monkey is a winner from the get go, even if some of the explicit, gory violence inevitably scattered throughout the book might offend some. The Fourth Monkey Killer has been terrorising Chicago for five years, with seven victims each mutilated in different ways and has just died in a traffic accident, leaving the main investigator Detective Sam Peter, in a cat and mouse race to discover the the latest, now one-eared, abductee before she eventually perishes, when the killer's diary falls into his possession. The criminal's backstory which we gradually discover is both harrowing and fascinating as Sam has to delve into the psychopath's sick mind in an effort to understand him and solve the conundrum of the victim's whereabouts and identity, but is he being manipulated from beyond the grave? And why were the victims specifically selected? Fast-paced, full of twists related to the the title based on a Japanese saying, this is already in the bestseller lists and no wonder! ~ Maxim Jakubowski Maxim Jakubowski June 2017 Highly Recommended. The Lovereading view... Oh my, this is a sensational rattlesnake-strike of a read! The terrifying Four Monkey Killer is dead, he has left a personal diary containing clues for the investigating team to follow, can they beat the clock and rescue his last victim? We follow the diary, victim, and detectives over several days, short snappy chapters filled with impact and drama ensured I could not and did not want to stop reading. This book is so rammed full of shocking revelations, even if I had an idea of where something was going, I was soon hit full broadside by another stomach churning blast. The diary gave me the heebie-jeebies as I read, at points I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before I could continue. Be warned, J. D. Barker owns one seriously twisted and evil-plotting pen, the diary is horribly addictive, and the rest just plain addictive. ‘The Fourth Monkey’ in turns repulsed and thrilled me, it is an exceedingly creepy, yet brilliantly plotted, fabulous read and I can’t recommend it highly enough. ~ Liz Robinson
May 2017 Debut of the Month. A beautifully eerie tale, a feast for your eyes, a torment for your mind. The exquisite cover immediately called to me, I found myself bewitched and reaching out to touch it. A house sits at the centre of this tale, a house bought as a means to escape, to reconnect, to exist at one with the surroundings. Michael invites us to listen to a story, and he paints a picture for you to taste, to feel. The descriptions are striking, particularly of the people, filling my eye and mind with their essence. Yet a trickle of unease hovers over the pages, encouraging thoughts to flicker, leaving you teetering on the edge of fear. Billy O’Callaghan writes with a skilfully light touch, this isn’t a terrifying, afraid to sit in the dark tale, it’s more subtle than that, instead it will creep inside minds, slice a little space for itself, and take up residence.‘The Dead House’, with a shiver-inducing final few pages, is a wonderfully mesmerising read, and I loved it. ~ Liz Robinson
If you are an intrepid reader and delight in the creatively eerie, startling and spine-chilling, then some distinctive and perfectly crafted short stories await. Of course there are 13 tales, however there is nothing about the obvious here, as they range in length from one page to a novella, then float through history, fantasy and reality. ‘Night Music’ has the ability to encourage the imagination to go into overdrive, so it felt as though John Connolly was wielding a sharpened and potentially double-edged pen when I found further books, some alive with malice, lurking within the pages. I particularly enjoyed ‘The Caxton Private Lending Library and Book Depository’ which will remain vibrantly alive and functioning within my mind. So from the strangely weird and wonderful, through to bitterly sorrowful, and grimly formidable, here have gathered, waiting to provoke your imagination, some wonderfully readable tales of the supernatural. One of our Books of the Year 2015.
Offered as a Hammer novella, you may well expect a substantial amount of supernatural horror, however a more rational yet none the less uncomfortable and captivating read awaits. The story is told from Muna’s viewpoint, held as a slave, abused and kept in the dark, she still has a cunning intelligence and quietly bides her time. The simplicity of the writing reveals a truly complicated and at times distressing subject matter. The ending is left on a note of uncertainty, your thoughts scrabble for purchase as they are pushed off a cliff of understanding. The author writes with a true level of compassion without hiding the cruelty explored in this creatively taut, original and chilling read.
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